How to Increase Oxygen Saturation Levels
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Optimal oxygen levels in our body have a significant impact on your overall health. In this post, you will learn how to increase oxygen saturation levels.
Oxygen saturation refers to the circulation of oxygen through a person’s bloodstream, with recorded levels below 90 percent typically considered problematic and above 95 percent usually regarded as healthy. Individuals with medical conditions such as asthma have reduced oxygen saturation levels, which can result in weakness, tiredness, lethargy, shortness of breath, and a host of more severe issues.
Medical intervention, such as the use of supplemental oxygen, is the most effective way to deal with chronically low oxygen saturation; however, there’re some proven activities a person can do on their own to improve their saturation levels. In this article, we will take you through ways on how to increase oxygen saturation levels to help improve the quality of your life.
How to Increase Oxygen Saturation Levels?
- Breathe More Slowly and Deeply
Scientific studies have shown that most adults use only about a third of their lung capacity when breathing. This means that many people breathe involuntarily while also breathing inefficiently. This inefficiency leads to less oxygen entering the lungs and, thereby, the blood vessels, consequently lowering your oxygen saturation. By breathing slowly and deeply, you can enhance all of the activities in your bloodstream.
Most adults breathe at a rate of about ten respirations every minute; increasing this speed to fifteen per second has proven to benefit oxygen saturation. Try breathing through your nose and pause for a couple of seconds after every breath. Stay as comfortable as you can as you’re breathing. This is also called the Buteyko system, and it could help to maximize your oxygen saturation.
- Respiratory Training for Optimum Health Benefits
While sometimes making the conscious attempt to breathe slowly and profoundly benefits your oxygen saturation, implementing more lasting adjustments to your breathing routines will create superior outcomes. Whether healthy or having breathing-related medical conditions, you can increase your oxygen saturation through respiratory training.
You can also find guided breathing training out of a health setting; in ways such as joining a yoga class or being taught diaphragmatic breathing (either by a vocal coach or a respiratory trainer).
- Quit Smoking and Avoid Secondhand Smoke
Inhaling smoke from Tobacco products severely hurts your lungs and suppresses their capacity to introduce oxygen into your blood effectively. If you smoke and have reduced blood saturation levels, stopping is the very first and possibly most important step you may take to take care of the condition. Look for whatever help you want to stop.
- Breath Fresher Air
Oxygen levels from the surrounding air influence your oxygen saturation. For instance, individuals who reside in higher elevations generally have reduced saturation levels. The more oxygen and fewer impurities such as smoke and dust which enter your body when you breathe, the better for your oxygen saturation.
If you reside in a place with clean air, open a window or go outside. Grow plants in your home to increase oxygen level, dust, and clean more frequently. Also, you can purchase air cleaners if possible.
- Consume More Water
You may remember from chemistry class that a water molecule includes two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen molecule. Thus, each time you drink water or consume water-rich foods, then you’re introducing oxygen in your body. Gulping water down will not magically fix your issue of reduced oxygen saturation, but regular hydration is still a sensible portion of a strategy for somebody with low levels.
Plain water is your top option for hydration, while vegetables and fruits are water-rich and wholesome food options. Try, for example, freshly-made fruit juices, smoothies, green beans, carrots, and steamed spinach. Drinking water may help to loosen the mucus from your airways. This will assist them to remain open and offer the most oxygen access.
- Exercise Sensibly
Aerobic exercise in itself doesn’t necessarily raise oxygen saturation, but it is going to increase your capability to use the oxygen that you do have more sparingly. An exercise that can help you shed weight is much more likely to have a positive influence on real oxygen saturation levels.
In case you’ve COPD or a different condition that affects your cardiovascular or pulmonary wellness, you’ll have limitations for your exercise options. Work together with your healthcare team to come up with a realistic and effective strategy for you.
How to Monitor Your Oxygen Saturation Levels?
Now that we have learned how to increase oxygen saturation levels, it is time to know how to monitor our progress. Pulse oximetry is a painless and noninvasive test that measures a person’s oxygen saturation levels. Fingertip pulse oximeter is the most popular device for monitoring oxygen levels in the blood. Furthermore, it is a portable pulse oximeter, so you can carry it whenever you are traveling.
Bottom Line
Oxygen saturation levels vary from person-to-person based on numerous factors. For instance, levels tend to be highest around mid-childhood and slowly decline as you age. Do not get hooked on an exact number; instead, work with a professional to find the range that suits your overall wellbeing best. Also, don’t forget to get yourself the best pulse oximeter. I hope this guide on how to increase oxygen saturation levels has helped you a lot.